Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Budapest and Santa Teresa

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Teresa: $1,546 a month against $1,641 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Budapest outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

80

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
Learn more

Budapest Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Santa Teresa
Learn more

Santa Teresa Living Index

Jump to prices

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,641

/mo nomad

Santa Teresa

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,546

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Budapest and in Santa Teresa

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Budapest and in Santa Teresa actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,641 per month in Budapest vs $1,546 in Santa Teresa, rent included.

Budapest $1,641
Santa Teresa $1,546

A couple spends around $2,562 per month in Budapest vs $2,318 in Santa Teresa, rent included.

Budapest $2,562
Santa Teresa $2,318

A family of three spends $3,483 per month in Budapest vs $3,090 in Santa Teresa, rent included.

Budapest $3,483
Santa Teresa $3,090

Budapest costs about 6% more than Santa Teresa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Budapest and Santa Teresa sit above the global median – Budapest by 21%, Santa Teresa by 14%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.04 Ft 4,536

$10.08 ₡4,519

39.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$60.9 Ft 19.7K

$43.44 ₡19.5K

40.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.37 Ft 3,351

$9.24 ₡4,144

12.23%

Cappuccino

$3.46 Ft 1,117

$3.73 ₡1,673

-7.24%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 Ft 669

$1.97 ₡883

5.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 Ft 572

$1.66 ₡745

6.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.69 Ft 1,191

$3.00 ₡1,344

23.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.80 Ft 1,229

$4.58 ₡2,055

-17.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.16 Ft 374

$1.98 ₡887

-41.41%

White Bread (500g)

$1.85 Ft 598

$2.90 ₡1,301

-36.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.40 Ft 776

$2.21 ₡990

8.60%

Eggs

$3.99 Ft 1,289

$2.93 ₡1,312

36.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.40 Ft 3,683

$9.91 ₡4,446

15.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.87 Ft 2,221

$9.31 ₡4,173

-26.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.49 Ft 4,682

$13.64 ₡6,116

6.23%

Apples (1kg)

$1.88 Ft 607

$4.61 ₡2,068

-59.22%

Banana (1kg)

$2.14 Ft 693

$1.52 ₡681

40.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.30 Ft 744

$4.23 ₡1,898

-45.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.04 Ft 1,304

$3.07 ₡1,377

31.60%

Potato (1kg)

$1.02 Ft 329

$3.20 ₡1,437

-68.13%

Onion (1kg)

$0.99 Ft 320

$2.63 ₡1,180

-62.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.58 Ft 510

$1.04 ₡466

51.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.70 Ft 225

$2.81 ₡1,258

-75.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.03 Ft 2,594

$5.08 ₡2,277

58.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.18 Ft 1,997

$14.20 ₡6,368

-56.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 Ft 401

$2.36 ₡1,058

-47.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 Ft 666

$2.56 ₡1,149

-19.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.59 Ft 513

$1.00 ₡449

59.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.52 Ft 8,893

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.43 Ft 1,110

$1.81 ₡810

89.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.33 Ft 431

$1.87 ₡837

-28.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.45 Ft 6,607

$8.00 ₡3,589

155.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.93 Ft 624

$1.45 ₡652

33.10%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$29.1K Ft 9.4M

$37.2K ₡16.7M

-21.61%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$34.7K Ft 11.2M

$32.8K ₡14.7M

5.89%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$175 Ft 56.4K

$84.7 ₡38.0K

106.25%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$23.62 Ft 7,631

$26.18 ₡11.7K

-9.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.60 Ft 7,625

$49.65 ₡22.3K

-52.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$68.8 Ft 22.2K

$50.6 ₡22.7K

36.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.26 Ft 6,224

$23.98 ₡10.8K

-19.68%

Cinema Ticket

$10.31 Ft 3,333

$8.87 ₡3,976

16.23%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$535 Ft 172.9K

$573 ₡256.9K

-6.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.8K Ft 5.4M

$12.6K ₡5.6M

34.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.9 Ft 32.3K

$62.9 ₡28.2K

58.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.27 Ft 14.0K

$51.1 ₡22.9K

-15.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 Ft 36.1K

$127 ₡56.9K

-11.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 Ft 38.4K

$107 ₡47.9K

11.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$832 Ft 268.8K

$700 ₡314.1K

18.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 Ft 203.3K

$605 ₡271.4K

3.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,586 Ft 512.4K

$1,462 ₡655.5K

8.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,197 Ft 386.6K

$970 ₡435.0K

23.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,718 Ft 1.8M

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,947 Ft 1.3M

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,712 Ft 553.1K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.45

10.17

-36.58%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Budapest: October 19, 2026

Last update for Santa Teresa: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Budapest

$629 38.4%

Santa Teresa

$605 39.1% 3.8% $24

Groceries & Markets

Budapest

$262 16%

Santa Teresa

$349 22.6% 33.3% $87

Eating Out

Budapest

$226 13.8%

Santa Teresa

$192 12.4% 15.3% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Budapest

$222 13.5%

Santa Teresa

$160 10.4% 27.6% $61

Clothing & Footwear

Budapest

$168 10.3%

Santa Teresa

$156 10.1% 7% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Budapest

$89 5.5%

Santa Teresa

$68 4.4% 23.6% $21

Getting Around

Budapest

$44 2.7%

Santa Teresa

$15 * 1% 65.6% $29

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $832 in Budapest versus $700 in Santa Teresa. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61.0 in Budapest versus $43.00 in Santa Teresa. Groceries tell a different story – $262 in Budapest vs $349 in Santa Teresa – so Budapest wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Budapest

🇨🇷 Santa Teresa

🕒 Local time

17:33 5:33 PM

09:33 9:33 AM

8 h behind Budapest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,686,222 Capital

3,099

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR

1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD, EUR to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 323 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 363 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.75 EUR).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 448 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.23 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Budapest Santa Teresa 10,260 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Budapest
Santa Teresa

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Budapest vs Santa Teresa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 6%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,461 per month in Budapest and $2,319 in Santa Teresa. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Santa Teresa, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $61.0 in Budapest and $43.00 in Santa Teresa. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 33% cheaper in Budapest – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Santa Teresa, where all-in costs run around $1,546, than in Budapest at $1,641. In Santa Teresa it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Santa Teresa – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Santa Teresa. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Budapest makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.